Bread

[Piemaster]

I've been trying to bake my own bread. This is the 3rd attempt:
View attachment 4324
The first 2 attempts were actually worse.
What am I doing wrong? Looks like bread, tastes (sort of) like bread, but it isn't rising much.
Recipe I'm using, from back of yeast sachet packets; 500g strong bread flour, 25g butter, 1 1/4 tsp salt, 2 tsp yeast, 300ml lukewarm water.
Mix up dry ingredients, bung in water, knead (with kenwood chef type mixer).
Leave it to rise for 1 hour in the warmth, then bung in oven, 210 deg for about 30min.
Flour, water, yeast. Do recipes get any simpler? So why isn't it working?

 

[Joe24]

You buy yeast
Just go to the bakery wherever you shop and ask for some fresh stuff. Thats what ive done before, and they will give you more then enough.
Why do you use a mixer to kneed you wimp, gets your hands in there!


You need self raising bread flour though, that will make it rise better.

 

[wafflycat]

I use a breadmaker (Morphy Richards Accents) and I haven't bought any bread since the middle of May. Bread is something that is variable due to all sorts of factors.. flour (brand, freshness or otherwise), yeast (I find different types vary in how much is needed, the sort of rise), ambient temperature & humidity. I've worked out a recipe that is pretty foolproof for my breadmaker to make a decent loaf that is 50/50 strong wholemeal and very strong white and another made 50/50 wholegrain Kamut and very strong white. In the white flour I find the *very strong* is better than the bog-standard strong white. I love the breadmaker - bung in the ingredients, switch on, select programme suitable to your mixture, start. It does all the timings and hard labour of kneading, risings, temperatures. Excellent.

 

[JediGoat]

It might sound silly, but if you are leaving the bread to rise in the kitchen, make sure the washing machine isn't on. I make my own bread a lot (but I'm lazy, so use a bread machine), and the vibration from the washer spinning can prevent it rising.

Another issue can be a cool draft from a nearby window.

Mind you, whilst I've made some amazingly ugly loaves, I've never made one that didn't taste lovely

The ones that don't rise are great for eating with soup.

 

[purplepolly]

knead (with kenwood chef type mixer).

that's not kneading

Kneading is giving it a really good bashing. Try making bread after you've been out on the bike and someones tried to run you over. That'll get you kneading the bread properly.

 

[PaulB]

Life's FAR too short to make your own bread.

 

[HelenD123]

If I'm using dried yeast I dissolve it in the water first. The water should be at body temperature i.e. when you hold your hand under the tap it should feel neither warm nor cold. I knead by hand for about 10 minutes. Most people stop kneading way too soon.

 

[ComedyPilot]

I'll make some now, and show you the pics later. Unfortunately you'll have to imagine the smell. Parmesan and sun dried tomato. mmmmmmmmmmmmmmm

 

[wafflycat]

Imagine the small what, CP?

 

[HelenD123]

CP - you've made me get off my backside and make some as well. I'll be back later with a Yorkshire Cobble loaf.

 

[scots_lass]

After it has risen once, bash it about again and leave to rise a second time. Then pop into oven.

 

[ComedyPilot]

Imagine the small what, CP?

Smell

 

[Chris Sirrus]

If it's not rising you've either used not enough yeast or too much salt.

The reason the crust is so pale is because there are no sugars (which the yeast will make from the carbohydrate in the flour) to caramelise.

 

[stephec]

As Chris says, you need to bung in a tbs of sugar to get a proper crust.

 

[ComedyPilot]

I cannot begin to describe what my kitchen smells like now.


Mmmmmmmmmmmmmm


Photo shortly